


Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire

by Orchidae



Series: Summer of Love [3]
Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: 1967, Christmas Eve, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, M/M, Mentions of Major Character Deaths
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:40:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28299852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Orchidae/pseuds/Orchidae
Summary: "It’s nice though, sitting here with you," Thomas said as they sat in front of the fire. In some respects, he still couldn't believe that they could be together like this.
Relationships: Thomas Barrow/Richard Ellis
Series: Summer of Love [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1522355
Comments: 10
Kudos: 61
Collections: A Very Thomas Barrow Christmas 2020





	Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire

At first, Thomas had though the prospect of a Christmas holiday had seemed like a fool’s errand. But the fact that they were able to have a holiday together at all, publicly, for all the world to see, was still a novelty. A year ago, just being together had been illegal but now they here they were, renting a cottage together for Christmas, in the Yorkshire dales no less. The man they had rented it from had known full well that they were a couple and either didn’t care or deemed them to be old and harmless.

Richard had wanted to host the family that year, but with the flat being as tiny as it was, with a kitchen no bigger than a cupboard, they had decided to come to Yorkshire. Thomas, at Richard’s urging, had telephoned everyone at Downton to tell them they would be in town.

On Christmas Eve they had made the trip to Downton where they had first visited the big house and had been invited to tea in the _Library_ with the family. Lord and Lady Grantham and their boys, The Talbots, Lord and Lady Hexham, their children and grandchildren, Mr Branson, and Dr Branson and her daughter. The young people were particularly excited to see him and regaled him with tales from their respective schools and universities. They all cooed over Harry and well he seemed to be getting along with the Labradors. If only old Carson could see them now, he would be rolling in his grave.

Since they still hadn’t hired Thomas’s replacement, and Thomas suspected they didn’t plan to hire a replacement at all, he had gone and fetched the tea for old time’s sake. Daisy had embraced him like a brother, before going back to agonising over all the elements of tomorrow’s Christmas dinner. She rarely made big dinners anymore, as the family usually hired caterers for parties, opting instead to make things that could be heated up in the oven. But Mrs Patmore, God rest her soul, had been extremely protective of her Christmas recipes and Daisy was now the only person who knew how to replicate them.

They had then paid a visit to Yew Tree Farm where Andy was entertaining a multitude of small grandchildren by building a snowman in the bottom field, still as spry and long-limbed at sixty as he had been as a young man.

Then they had visited the Molesley’s in their little cottage for even more tea and mince pies. The pair of them were well into their nineties by now and it was a miracle that they were still pottering about.

“I expect they’ll be one of those couples who die in their sleep on the same night,” Richard commented as they drove back to their own cottage.

“Some people have all the luck,” Thomas said.

“I hope that happens to us.” Richard laughed, “Or I hope I go first. No, that’s selfish of me, you wouldn’t be able to survive without me. I hope you go first.”

“Don’t joke about that sort of thing,” Thomas said, feeling as though even mentioning such a thing would tempt fate. They were both surprisingly healthy, Thomas at seventy-nine and Richard was seventy-five but didn’t look a day over fifty the lucky bastard. But you never knew when these things could hit you. Mr Carson had seemed fine until he had hit eighty, then everything had gone downhill extremely fast. Thomas has been thrown for a loop when the old butler had passed away, seeming so small and helpless where he had once been so imposing. In a way, Thomas had always believed that Mr Carson would live forever, as though he was built from the same stone as Downton Abbey itself.

“I hope we go together too,” he murmured. If Richard heard him, he didn’t say anything.

They returned to the cottage that evening, and Richard prepared them a simple supper of cold cuts and cheese while Thomas decanted a bottle of red wine. After their meal, Richard put on one of his Nat King Cole records as they enjoyed the last of their wine by a roaring fire.

“Better enjoy this while it lasts, before the masses descend upon us tomorrow.” Richard laughed.

“It’s nice though, sitting here with you,” Thomas said as they sat in front of the fire. In some respects, he still couldn't believe that they could be together like this.

“We’ve sat together many a time.” Richard chuckled.

“You know what I mean.” Thomas huffed.

“Yeah, I know.”


End file.
